jeudi 20 novembre 2014

Animals that don't Exist

The Sock Snake

The sock snake, Natrix
socus, is native to most of
Europe. Its name stems from its distinctive, and rather bizarre,
feeding mechanism. The sock snake, unlike any other known species of
snakes, eats mainly acari. Specifically, those on the feet of humans.
The snake will also swallow any skin parasites, but few of them get
digested.

When
feeding, the snake will dislocated its jaw, and try and gob up the
whole foot. Then it will slowly suck out the acari, and other small
invertebrates. This is a long process, and the nutritional benefits
are small, but the snakes' metabolism is slow, and doesn't need much
food. And of course, it helps that their hosts are consenting.

The
sock snakes have always been considered beneficial in Europe. Over
time, they have been integrated into cultural and economic trends,
becoming one of the trademarks of the old continent, much praised for
their beneficial effects. For some reason, the snakes refuse to
reproduce as soon as they are exported out of Europe, and it has been
estimated that up to half the tourism to Europe from outside is due
in part to the sock snakes.

Biologists
stipulate that it was the beneficial effects the snakes had on human
feet that allowed them to quickly spread through the continent, and
flourish. Why they cannot reproduce anywhere else, though, is still a
mystery.